Court Hearing on Electronic Voting Company's Threats Against Critics

Diebold Suppressing Evidence of Voting Machine Flaws

San Jose, CA - Two student activists and an Internet Service Provider (ISP) will
ask a federal district court judge on Monday to put an end to ongoing legal
threats by Diebold Systems, Inc., in a case involving the disclosure of flaws in
the company's electronic voting machines. The nonprofit ISP Online Policy Group
(OPG) and two Swarthmore college students seek to prevent Diebold from issuing
further cease-and-desist letters aimed at squelching public discussion of these
flaws.

The hearing will take place at 9:00 a.m. PST in courtroom 3 on the 5th floor of
the San Jose Federal Courthouse, located on 280 South 1st St. in San Jose,
California. There will be a press conference outside of the courthouse
immediately following the hearing.

Diebold has threatened a dozen or more ISPs that host websites that either
publish or link to a corporate email archive revealing technical problems with
the company's voting machines. The archive includes email messages written by
Diebold employees discussing how to resolve, or in some cases, obfuscate these
problems.

EFF and the Center for Internet and Society Cyberlaw Clinic at Stanford Law
School are providing legal representation in this important case to prevent
abusive copyright claims from silencing public debate about voting, the very
foundation of our democratic process.

"Instead of paying lawyers to threaten its critics, Diebold should invest in
creating electronic voting machines that include voter-verified paper ballots
and other security protections," said EFF Legal Director Cindy Cohn.

Media coverage of Diebold threats:

EFF Applauds Ruling in Chamberlain Group v. Skylink DMCA Case

The Northern District of Illinois District Court this week ruled that the
universal garage door clicker sold by Skylink Technologies that interoperates
with Chamberlain Group garage door openers does not violate the Digital
Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).

"A homeowner has a legitimate expectation that he or she will be able to access
the garage even if the original transmitter is misplaced or malfunctions," wrote
US District Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer in the order.

"We're pleased the court recognized consumers' reasonable expectation that they
can replace lost or damaged remote controls with competing products without
violating the DMCA," said EFF Staff Attorney Gwen Hinze. "Congress clearly did
not intend to give copyright owners the power to veto interoperable consumer
products when it passed the DMCA."

Media coverage of the ruling:

321 Studios Advocates Fair Uses in Digital Copyright Law

DVD Backup Software Vendor Supports EFF's Efforts

St. Louis, MO - DVD backup software vendor 321 Studios this week announced it
will donate as much as $1 million over the next year to EFF. 321 Studios hopes
to support EFF's work in advocating for digital copyright law responsive to
consumer needs and to educate its customers about these issues.

The company will donate $25 toward EFF's efforts for each sale of a Lite-On DVD
burner and DVD X Copy Platinum software bundle through the 321 Studios website
or at the 321 Studios Touch Point Customer Service Center in the St. Louis
Galleria Mall.

"We are very pleased that 321 Studios has chosen to recognize the important work
of the Electronic Frontier Foundation with a generous financial contribution
over the next year," said EFF Executive Director Shari Steele. "321 Studios
knows firsthand the importance of advocating for copyright law that preserves
the balance among content creators, innovators, and the public."

"This is a natural partnership that allows our customers to join the fight for
digital rights. The EFF is working to protect those rights - including that of
Americans to protect their home entertainment investment through DVD backup and
repair," said Robert Moore, President and Founder of 321 Studios. "As the
leader in the DVD backup, repair, and creation software industry, it makes sense
for 321 and our customers to put some economic muscle behind that fight."

Last year, 321 Studios filed a declaratory relief action in federal court asking
a judge to confirm that its software, which enables consumers to make backup
copies of DVDs they own, does not violate the Digital Millennium Copyright Act
(DMCA). The major movie studios counter-sued to prohibit 321 Studios from
selling and distributing that software. EFF submitted a friend-of-the-court
brief arguing that the DMCA cannot constitutionally prohibit tools, like 321
Studios', that enable the public to make fair use of their media. The court has
not yet ruled on the case.

ART Aims at Movie
Pirates, Misses
A new bill targeting pre-release movie piracy focuses on P2P file sharers, not
the major source of Hollywood movies onto the Internet - the leaks from inside
the studios themselves.

Michael Moore Speaks Out on
E-Voting
The normally soft-spoken, timid documentary filmmaker shocked British
audiences by openly questioning the wisdom of e-voting machines sold by partisan
fund raisers.

Rock the
Vote - No, Really
The rock band Railer is touring North America - and stumping for a bill that
would require e-voting machines to have voter verifiable paper receipts.

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